Shadow Dancing
by soulful-sin
Summary: JimmyxBetty She had missed the dance, so he brought the dance to her.


Author's Note: It's Jimmy/Betty. It's fluff. And if you don't like Jimmy/Betty, it will probably make you sick. Sorry about that.

J/Cers, you've been warned. There is no Cindy in here. If you don't like Jimmy/Betty, BACK OFF. I won't repeat myself.

Fyi, this one-shot was written to "Welcome Home" by Tegan and Sara on repeat.

Shadow Dancing

Betty Quinlan twirled a rose between her fingers and smiled, inhaling the scent. As per Jimmy's request, she had dressed up for the occasion. She wore a cream colored gown that was hemmed at her chest and her hair fell to her shoulders. The gown was thin, but not sheer, and matched the warm summer evening. She waited in the park, rubbing one knee high clad leg behind the other. To match the dress, she wore pink short heels that were only a couple inches off the ground. They were open toed and laced with pink ribbons.

Concerned but not overly so, she consulted her watch. At the stroke of seven, a familiar brown haired boy rushed forward. He was wearing a suit and a tie and though she questioned why they had to dress up for a date in the park, she admitted that she liked the formal look on him. His hair was slicked back and he fumbled with a box in his hand. It was purple and, intrigued, she stepped away from the statue at which he had told her to wait.

"Jimmy?" she inquired and he jumped, like he hadn't been expecting her. She smiled.

"Oh, hi, Betty!" he said. "What brings you here?"

Betty stared blankly. "You asked me here."

"Oh, right," he said and blushed, flustered. "Uh...this is for you."

He opened the purple box and inside was an earring pair with inset diamonds. Her eyes widened and she gaped at him. He smiled.

"Do you like it?"

"Jimmy, how can you _afford_ this? I can't possibly accept it," she said.

"I synthesized the natural processes that create diamonds in my lab," he said and shrugged, like it was nothing.

Betty laid the earrings in her hand and gazed at them in wonder. She nudged one with her finger and half expected it to shatter, though that would have been impossible. The diamonds were perfectly cut and the size of three eraser heads lined atop each other. She was aware then of her heart racing and his immediacy, standing not a foot away.

"Wow," was all she could say. She forced her brain to restart and pecked him on the cheek. If it were possible, he would have floated there. His mouth had dropped and his eyes were feverishly wide. He shook off the reaction and grabbed her hand. With the other hand, he extracted the earrings and replaced them in the case. He shut the case and guided her to a shaded area that she could have sworn hadn't existed in the park until that very moment.

A crystal ball descended from mid air and glittered, throwing sharp lights all over the clearing that he must have encouraged to grow. Trees surrounded the small, circular space and, in the corner, was Goddard projecting an image of an orchestra playing. At Jimmy's nod, classical music wove a spell around them. It was light, full of flutes, and an occasional piano interlude. A floral scent mysteriously added to the music, though there were no visible flowers.

"I know you were out of the town for the last dance," he explained. The crystal ball obtained then the moon's luminescence and cast a gentle glow on the clearing and his face. His eyes were robin's egg blue and her heart skipped a beat.

"You didn't have to do all this!" she objected. He took her hand and it was warm in hers. His face was still flushed and she swore she could hear his heart rushing in time with hers.

"I wanted to," he insisted. She grinned and he guided her into the clearing's center. "Care to dance, Betty?"

She placed her hand on his waist and he lifted their clasped hands, resting his hand on her shoulder. She removed her hand from his and cupped his cheek. "I thought you'd never ask."

They swayed in time to the music. He took great care not to fumble or step on her toes while they moved and, when he dared, he led her. It was clear that he had either taken dancing lessons or used his inventions to teach him, but it didn't matter. Their heights were too disparate for her to rest her head on his shoulder and perhaps he noticed, because he used his hover sneakers to elevate him to her height.

Heart skipping beats like mad, she rested her head on his shoulder and a goofy smile lit his face. She had to laugh at it and the smile disappeared, replaced by confusion.

"What?" he asked.

"Nothing," she said and smiled.

He stared at her and though he wasn't demanding an answer, he wanted one.

"I like the effect I have on you," she said.

"I like the effect you have on me too," he replied dreamily. She laughed and stroked his hair. He twirled her around and when he stopped, she rested against him. Goddard barked a question and Jimmy frowned, jerking back from a trance. The dog's screen opened and Jimmy read the inquiry. He landed and separated from her. Frowning, she waited while Jimmy walked over to Goddard, fetched disks from his chest compartment, and returned.

"May I have your shoes?" he asked.

"My shoes?" she asked, puzzled.

"You'll see," he said and his eyes twinkled.

She slipped off her shoes with some difficulty (he had to help her undo the laces in one instance). He attached the small disks to her shoes and then helped her lace the shoes up again. She frowned. "What's this about?"

"Clip your heels together," he said, levitating again. "Just don't say 'there's no place like home'."

Bewildered but willing to try, she clicked her heels together and shot up a few inches into the air. He smiled at her and she smiled back.

"Someone like you deserves a chance to walk on air," he told her.


End file.
